The only existing example of the Ford Thunderbird Italien will be put up for auction (25 photos + 1 video)
The experimental 1963 Ford Thunderbird Italien, at the whim of Henry Ford's heir, became a symbiosis of American and Italian design styles. 
By the early sixties, conceived as a response to the Corvette, Ford's Burevestnik, aka Thunderbird, had become a retired athlete, becoming one of the founders of the premium segment of personal luxury cars. In 1961, the third generation of the model, following the example of the flagship Lincoln Continental, was rebooted in a radically different image, getting rid of a ton of superficial decor. 
The wide and squat, elegant-looking car was in strong demand - in its debut year alone, 73 thousand were sold in the States. The T-Bird could be purchased in both an open Convertible and a closed hardtop version with a hardtop that allowed leather-like vinyl covering in the Landau version. For the convertible, the Sports Roadster option was offered, which provided, in addition to the spoked wheels, also a special fiberglass casing for the rear row of seats, which, when installed, really turned the car into some kind of roadster. 
By the way, those who saw the action movie “Big Showdown in Little Tokyo” probably noted the trick with the “Thunderbird” of just that generation. Its 6.4-liter V8 developed in various versions from 300 to 340 hp. s., the throttle response was decent, so the jump over a long body with people inside had to be accurately calculated:
Also, in a single copy, based on a standard 1962 hardtop, a special modification of the Thunderbird Italien was made for the sake of participation in the traveling Ford Custom Car Caravan auto exhibition, which roamed around the States and demonstrated to the audience not concepts divorced from reality, like Jimmy's Motorama of the 50s, but more practical and in demand possibilities for tuning serial products.
As the name suggests, the car has been treated in Italian style with some Ferrari in mind. After all, in those years, Henry Ford II had an uneasy relationship with the Italian auto industry, and the bully from Ferrari actually wanted to teach him a lesson at Le Mans, which he eventually succeeded in doing.
Work on the show car was carried out by the partner company Dearborn Steel Tubing (DST) under the guidance of experienced designer Vince Gardner, who had previously worked fruitfully on Studebaker cars. Following the customer's wishes, Gardner created a sloping fastback roofline, recommended the front fenders and doors from a 1963 Thunderbird be installed on the donor, changed the rear wheel cutouts, etc., so that in total there were about 80 custom parts, including a new grille. The interior was generously upholstered from top to bottom in cherry-colored leather, the same as the car itself.
After the end of the promotional tours of 1963–1964. Italien was planned to be destroyed. However, the show car was lucky: it was bought by DST, and later sold to western actor Dale Robertson. He gave the car to his gardener, and then the process progressed. The leapfrog with the change of owners and repainting at some point blue ended only in 2008, when the car rested in one of the private collections, after the previous owner completely restored it, returning the original body color.
The current value of the Thunderbird Italien will be revealed at the March auction at RM Sotheby’s in Miami. The estimated price is 400–600 thousand US dollars, which makes this car one of the most expensive Thunderbirds.
